DISSOLVE RESISTANCE TO EMBRACE CHANGE: A GUIDED VISUALIZATION

In midlife and beyond, change is all around us. Sometimes we resist change even when we know it is good for us.

In this special episode, I guide you through a visualization to help you notice that resistance and dissolve it to embrace change.

Have your journal close by! After the visualization, I share a few writing prompts. Use them or write freely to reflect and deepen your experience.

⏲️The guided visualization starts at 01:35 and is just over 7 minutes long.

Enjoy this opportunity to release resistance and take steps toward your desired change.

xo Karli✨

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Transcript

DISSOLVE RESISTANCE TO EMBRACE CHANGE: A GUIDED VISUALIZATION

Hi there, my friend. It's me, Karli, your favorite GenX dealer of positive vibes, and life and wellness coach for women in midlife and beyond. 

In this season of life, it becomes more and more apparent that time waits for no one. I truly believe it's never too late to adopt new habits and behaviors, but sometimes creating that change can be difficult.

Keep listening for a guided visualization I created to help you move through resistance, open yourself to change, and place your well-being at the top of your priority list.

{MUSIC INTRO}

This visualization corresponds to the core message of my latest MIDLIFE MUSINGS email. Please read and listen to get the most out of this unique and impactful pair. If you don't receive my MIDLIFE MUSINGS emails that come out every other Sunday, you can sign up for them at the link in the show notes and transcript.

Do you find yourself resisting change? Maybe you find it difficult to prioritize your wellbeing, or you hold onto habits that no longer serve you. Perhaps you avoid setting boundaries or standing up for yourself in certain situations. 

We all have our moments when we do not want to change. Sometimes we realize it and sometimes we don't. Use this guided visualization to dissolve that resistance and take small steps toward change. 

At the end of our time together, I encourage you to write. Whether it's a few words or a few pages, you will benefit by reflecting on what comes to you today. Have your journal, notebook, or favorite app close by as you begin.

TIME MARKER 01:35

Find a comfortable spot and position, sitting or maybe lying down. Close your eyes or simply lower your gaze if you'd rather. Let your shoulders drop, soften your jaw.

Take a slow deep breath in and exhale fully.

Again, breathe in filling your belly and your chest and let it all go.
When thoughts float into your mind, allow them to drift away without any judgment.

Imagine you're standing beside a smooth, slow-moving river. The air is calm, the water is clear.

Feel the ground underneath your feet. Feel how stable it is, how supported you feel, how safe it is right there.

The river in front of you represents your ability to shift, ebb, and flow in this season of life.

Take a few steps into the cool water.

Feel the way it gently flows around your ankles and your legs, and sense your feet grounded in the earth beneath you here. It's less firm than on the riverside, but still safe.

Hear and feel the quiet strength of the river around you.

As you stand here in the water, picture an area of life where you've been resisting change.

Look at it without judgment. Only observe.

Now, cup your hands together and hold your resistance.

What form does it take?

What color is it?

How heavy is it?

With your resistance in your hands, gently lower them into the river.

Allow the water to flow over your resistance.

Notice how the water gently softens it.

See the edges start to erode, and more and more of it dissolves. Soon, the water carries it completely away, and your hands are now empty.

The river continues to flow, and you feel lighter.

You can feel an open space where that resistance once lived. Feel into that open space.

Now look down at your feet in the water. Several smooth stepping stones have appeared that were not there before.

They form a clear path to the other side of the river.

Observe how the water flows around them and notice how smooth they look.

You know that these stones are visible because of the now open space inside of you.

These stepping stones lead to the change you've been resisting.

Slowly step onto each of the stones, and as you do, notice how stable they are under your feet. Feel your confidence grow as you move closer to the other side of the river.

Step onto the riverbank and feel the earth under your feet. Here on the other side of the river, it is stable and safe, too.

Stay here for a moment, breathing. Listen to the water flowing.

Feel that open space inside of you.

Know that the river is always here for you, my friend. Come back whenever you want to dissolve resistance and find the stepping stones to change.

Bring your awareness back to the here and now.

Notice the surface beneath you.

Wiggle your fingers and toes and gently blink open your eyes.

I invite you to spend a few minutes writing, my friend. If you find it helpful, here are a few prompts for you.

• What area of life came to you today? 
• How did it feel to observe your resistance dissolving?
• What does that open space feel like? 
• What did it feel like to step on those stones that took you to the other side of the river?

I'm grateful for you, my friend. Thank you again for joining me. Be well. 

I'll be back in two weeks with another guided visualization or meditation. In the meantime, catch my episodes of FLIPSIDE OF MIDLIFE® out every Wednesday.

{MUSIC OUTRO}